TIP OF THE WEEK – WRITTEN IN STONE

Anyone who has tried to glean information from an ancestor’s centuries old gravestone realizes while “written in stone” by definition means permanent, in reality weathering of the stone renders many inscriptions impossible or difficult to read.  Applying chalk, flour, cornmeal, cornstarch, shaving cream, or doing crayon rubbings  to make inscriptions more legible were once popular techniques.  Please do not use these substances. They may seem benign, but they are harmful.   Here’s a couple of tips using aluminum foil that are not harmful to the stone.

Aluminum foil impression  – this works best with the thinnest, cheapest foil you can find and a damp sponge or clean, soft brush such as a makeup brush. Apply the foil shiny side down on the gravestone and gently press the foil against the stone with a damp sponge or soft brush. Carefully remove the foil from the stone and almost magically things that had not been discernible to your naked eye appear imprinted in the foil.

Remember if you find it necessary to secure the foil to the gravestone, do not apply any tape directly to the stone. Instead encircle the gravestone with the foil, overlapping the ends, and only tape foil to foil. Some cemeteries don’t allow visitors to touch the gravestones at all so check that out before taking a foil impression.

Aluminum foil mirror –  cloudy overcast and shadows make older stones more difficult to read so try visiting cemeteries on bright, sunny days when the sun is high in the sky.  It’s also suggested you bring a large mirror to cast light diagonally across the face of a difficult to read gravestone like a professional photographer would use a silver reflector board.  The mirror should be taller than the headstone.   In place of a cumbersome and breakable full length mirror, cover a large piece of cardboard with aluminum foil, shiny side out.  Use this as your full length mirror. This technique will require two people; one to direct the light with the foil mirror and another person to do the reading and/or photography   Try adding a powerful flashlight to your arsenal of equipment.  Experiment with the angles and reflecting light back onto the gravestone.

Happy headstone hunting to you and here are two links as examples of what you might expect from an aluminum foil impression.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=33059891

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=38952943